The rope didn’t even seem to mind his weight as Tim swung.

   His head was down, watching his boots scrape the worn dirt floor every time he dove down and then came up again, slowing down every second until he came to a complete stop.

   The sky above him was getting dark, an immense cloud of gray matter hung over the entire orphanage, there was almost no space for the blue or the light, which had already disappeared a few hours ago.

   The children who were playing there earlier had already gone back into the house in fear of the rain, but not Tim, there was still some time until it started raining, and he didn’t care if he was going to get a drop of rain or two. Because of this, he had not yet left the swing.

   If this was more or less than five years ago, he might have been doing the same thing in his backyard, probably while playing with his little plane, a gift from his father that he adored at the time.

   He wanted to have more memories from those days, and although many memories are already fading, this was one of the things he remembered perfectly.

   He didn’t even know what happened to this toy. Maybe if he had forgotten it in the yard that fateful day, it could still be there in the same place, lying in the grass next to his swing. Maybe a child could have found it and taken it home, it was quite possible that, almost five years after the incident, someone had already taken it away.

   Or else it would have been inside the house, where the fire would have consumed it entirely.

   “What are you still doing out here?”

   Tim was startled when he looked to the side and saw Eliza sitting on the other swing. She had gotten there at some point, but he was so focused on his feet that his distracted mind had not noticed until then.

   “I’m sorry, did I scare you?” she asked in her sweet voice. Her hands held the two ropes of the swing, her bare feet slowly pushed her body.

   “A little” he replied. “I’m here until the rain starts, then I’ll go back inside. But what are you doing here?” He wanted to know. Wasn’t it risky for her to come so close to the orphanage? The curtains were all closed now, but anyone could open them at that moment and then they would certainly see her.

   “I was looking for you.”

   Tim didn’t react for a few moments. Why did she want to see him? They only talked a little twice. Wouldn’t she have other people, someone more important to talk to?

   “Why me? Don’t you have any friends?”
   Eliza thought for a moment, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

   “Well, I have you,” she replied.

    Tim raised his eyebrow.

   “Do you consider me your friend?”

   “And why wouldn’t I consider it?” she cracked a smile, jumping up from her swing. Her bare, dirt-filled feet danced across the grass, and she once again had a small daisy tucked behind her ear.

   For some reason, she fit in very well with that garden, it was almost as if she was part of it, as if all the plants would lose their colour if she wasn’t around.

   “You’re new here, aren’t you?”

   “I arrived here a few days ago,” Tim replied. “Why do you ask?”

   “Ah… I have never seen you around here before. It had been a while since they had someone new, I thought they didn’t even welcome children anymore.”

   “You observe a lot here, don’t you? How long have you been playing here?”

   “I’ve known it here since I was little, actually.” Eliza turned her back to him and walked over to some lilac flowers growing in the grass. She crouched down to smell them and picked up a cutting, bringing the branch to him.

   “Look, smell this one.” she held out her hand and Tim leaned in to smell it. It smelled sweet and clean, it felt so good that Tim wished Eliza hadn’t lowered her hand so quickly. “It’s lavender. Apart from the daisies, they are my favourite flowers. Daisies smell warm and yellow, while lavender smells of tranquility and drizzly days, more or less like the weather is now.”

   “How can something smell like yellow or drizzle?”

   “I don’t know how to explain it, they just do. Every time I smell a flower, I feel something different” she explained. “The lavender suits you, you know? You smell like rain.”

   What Eliza said seemed nonsense, but somehow, he managed to understand what she meant, he couldn’t really explain why. It was a different way of looking at things, for sure, but it sounded almost like poetry. Tim wanted to be able to feel at least a little of what she felt when she smelled the flowers.

   “What do you like to play with?” she asked suddenly.

   “I don’t know, I don’t usually play that much anymore.”

   “I like hide-and-seek,” she answered the question instead. “I miss playing it, it’s been a while since I’ve had someone to play with.”

   “How old are you?”

   “Thirteen.”

   “Me too. I mean, I’ll be thirteen next month” he smiled.

   She was older than him—a year older, at most—but the way she walked and her sweet voice made her seem younger. Contrary to that, her size and more mature face gave away that she really was the age she said she was.

   “So, would you play with me? Just once?” she asked.

   “Right here in the garden?”

   “Of course, where else would it be?” she scoffed. “Come on, I doubt you’ll be able to find me, I’m extremely good at this, I know a lot of hiding places around here.”

   “Is that how you managed to hide from everyone here until now?” Tim joked. Eliza let out a laugh.

   “Quite like it. So, do you want to play or not?”

   Tim hesitated a little, but nodded. “Fine, but there’s no point on hiding too far away near the woods, it has to be around here.”

   “Fine, then.”

   Eliza ran away while Tim closed his eyes, resting his forehead on the wall outside the house. They hadn’t stipulated any count, so he decided to only count to ten. If she was really good at hiding like she said, then she could do it in that time.

   When he opened his eyes again, he found the garden empty. The grassy ground didn’t indicate where she could have gone, there was no footprint he could follow, but he knew she could not have gone far.

   There weren’t many trees to hide in there, if Eliza went in that direction, the best place to hide would be further away from there where the woods began, but they had agreed not to go there.

  She would have to be nearby, and in these conditions, the best place would be on the side of the house where there were more trees and bushes to hide.

   Tim went on the right side first, walking slowly to look at every bush and tree trunk that she could be hiding behind, but there was nothing. On the left side it was no different either, he found a small house where some gardening equipment and other clutter were probably stored, but she couldn’t be inside because the door was locked.

   He then decided to look in the backyard, even though he thought it was unlikely that he would find her there. He climbed into the treehouse, but there was nothing other than the toys that were already there.

   She was gone. How did she manage to disappear like that in just 10 seconds? That was too little time to even think about where to hide, he should have found her by now if she was nearby.

   Or maybe she wasn’t even there anymore.

   She could have already gone home, maybe this whole hide-and-seek idea was just to keep him busy and make a fool of him, since, taking into account everything he knew so far about her – which was practically nothing – it was quite capable for that to happen.

   He didn’t know her, he had no idea what was going on in her head, he didn’t even know what had made him agree to play in the first place.

   He ran to the left side of the house again, he ran past it this time, he no longer had the patience to search, it was better if he gave up and went back inside before the rain really started.

   “Hey, I give up!” he shouted, in case she was still there to hear. “You can leave wherever you are now.”

   If she didn’t respond now, he would go home.

   However, seconds later, he heard footsteps behind him, and her voice called him:

   “Have you given up already, Tim?”

   “Where were you?” he asked, surprised. He didn’t see where she came from. “I thought you left.”

   “Why would I do that? We agreed to play, remember?” she smiled. Eliza had an inviting smile, it was impossible not to smile back, Tim didn’t even notice when he did it.

   “Y-yes, but—”

   “I told you I was good.” she put her hands on her hips. “I was hidden the whole time and you didn’t even notice.”

   “May I know where?”

   Eliza raised her index finger to her lips.
   “A good hiderer never reveals her hiding places” she whispered.

   Tim let out an unexpected laugh. “I’m pretty sure that word doesn’t even exist!”

   He stopped laughing when, right behind the girl, amid flowers and bushes, he saw something move. It was shaking all the branches, he seemed to be running very fast, heading towards them.

   Before the thing appeared, Tim shouted:

   “Hey, be careful, there’s something behind you!” Eliza jumped to the side, but the fear passed as soon as she saw what it really was.

   “Calm down, it’s just a bunny.”
   Eliza crouched on the floor. It was a brown rabbit, its pricked ears lowered and its black eyes closed to receive pats on the head. From what he knew, rabbits weren’t that friendly, they were fearful and could attack if a stranger came too close, but he didn’t mind being touched by Eliza. Other than that, they seemed to be good friends.

   Eliza sat on the floor and the rabbit went into her lap, where he received more care in his fur .

   “Do you want to pet him?” she asked. “He won’t hurt you, he’s nice.”

   Tim crouched down beside her, carefully bringing her hand closer to pet the small animal. The fur was soft, more so than the one of a stuffed animal. He was warm and purring softly, Tim could feel its heart beating fast, despite appearing calm. He had never touched a rabbit before, it was so... cute.

   “I think he likes you.”

   “You think?”

   “He is happy. Rabbits purr when they are happy and want affection, just like cats do,” she explained, taking the rabbit off her lap and holding him in the air. “Do you want to put him on your lap?”

   Tim nodded and she positioned him in the space between his legs. Immediately, his lap became warmer. The rabbit lowered his head every time he petted him, the ears drooping behind his body. His snout wouldn’t stop moving, and Tim put his finger in so he could smell it.

   They were silent for a while. The rain hadn’t started yet, before it seemed like it was going to rain at any moment, but now he wasn’t sure anymore, maybe the sky had just been deceiving him and the weather was just going to be cloudy. Either way, Tim didn’t feel like he wanted to get out of there right now.

   “You said you’ve known here since you were little” he broke the silence. He wished he hadn’t, but he had suddenly remembered something. “so I figured you must have seen something strange about the children here, haven’t you?”

   “You mean about their powers?” she said unceremoniously. “Yes, I know that. This place is more isolated from the rest of the world for this reason, but anyone who investigates a little more eventually finds out.”

   “And you… are you fine with this? Aren’t you afraid at all?”

   “They are just children, I can’t be afraid of them” she replied. “but I have never tried to talk to anyone, I don’t want to get into trouble, it is better this way.”

   “And what made you talk to me then?” he asked. Eliza chuckled.

   “Well, it’s different, you are the one who discovered me.”

   “You could have left it alone and never shown up here again, but you came to me today.”

   “What difference would it make? You had already seen me, at least now I have someone to talk to” She said while stroking the rabbit that was still resting peacefully on Tim’s lap.

   He wanted to ask more about her, maybe know why she was so alone, but he decided he would not to that, he also would not appreciate anyone asking him something like that, there was certainly some reason for her to be that way too.

   Instead, more silence followed them, until the rabbit perked up its ears and hopped from his lap to a nearby bush, probably attracted by something that was there.

   “You have some ability too, don’t you? Since you are in this orphanage” she asked.

   “No, I’m the only one here that doesn’t, it’s a long story” he replied, wishing not to go into more detail. “I’m actually happy to find someone who doesn’t either.”

   “Have you ever thought about what ability you would have? I think if I had been born with one, it would probably be the ability to make plants grow anywhere, or talk to animals, one of those.”

   Tim was thoughtful for a while. Which ability would suit him best? He couldn’t find something that defined him, not the way Eliza was with flowers and animals.

   There was nothing about him that could become an ability, unless considering his ability to lose everyone around him, he already imagined that it could be some kind of superpower.

   But he wouldn’t tell her that. Instead he replied:

   “I don’t know which one I would have, but if I could choose, I would choose the power to control time, past or future.”

   “This one should be really good, but I don't know, I think something could go wrong, time seems like a very fragile thing to mess around with.”

   “Yes, maybe so, but I would choose this power anyway, so at least I could relive some memories again.”

   “But where is the present?” She asked.

   “The present?”

   “You said you wanted to be able to control the past and the future, but what about the present?”

   “The present doesn’t exist” he explained. “There is only what it was and what it will be, the present is just a slight second between the future and the past, it barely happens and it becomes the past again.”

   “Hmm, I never thought of it that way.”

   “When I’m talking to you, for example, everything I say becomes past tense as I get to the next word.”

   Eliza put her hand to her chin, thoughtful.

   “But still, if the present becomes the past as quickly as you say, it’s the only thing we can control, is it not? I for one would like to have the ability to stop time,” she said. “Isn’t it better that we make the most of the little time we are still in the present?”

   Tim parted his lips, his mouth slightly open, thinking about what he would say next. He thought he could give an answer to that right away, but he couldn’t. Instead, he just looked at her. Her blue eyes stared at him, they seemed to see more than just his surface.

   At that moment, a drop of water fell on his forehead, then another on his shoulder. The rain, which until now was only threatening to fall, started just when he thought it would no longer rain. Within seconds, the drops turned into a light drizzle, the earthy ground gradually moistened and the wind caused some of the leaves to fall.

   “Sorry, I need to go now.” He made to leave, but turned to her again. “W-will you be okay? Going out in the rain like that?”

   “I’ll manage to survive” she smiled. And again, he couldn’t help but smile back.

…

He didn’t look back to see when Eliza had left, the rain was getting heavier and at any moment someone could appear to call him, so he needed to get back as soon as possible.

   Her last words still echoed in his head. Eliza seemed to be someone intelligent, perhaps smarter than him, despite her childlike behavior.

   Maybe she was right in what she said about enjoying the present, but that didn’t apply to his situation. There was nothing the present could offer him, not while he was still a child trapped in that orphanage.

   He knew more or less what would happen when he left. His uncle hadn't had any heir, his money and the house in London would go to him, and although he still didn't know what his fate would be after that, it seemed like something better than being stuck there.

   As he turned to the side to enter the back door of the house, Tim was startled when he came face to face with Stephen. He had his arm above his forehead, trying to protect himself from the rain.

   His hair curls were still up, he was barely wet, he should have gone outside a while ago.

   “What were you still doing out here?” the boy asked.

   “N-nothing, I just got distracted” he said, and seeing that Stephen made a strange face at his answer, he continued: “Did you know there are rabbits around here? I was following one around the side of the house, but it disappeared.”

   “Yes, sometimes rabbits appear here, but foxes have appeared too, I would be more careful if I were you.”

   His explanation seemed convincing to Stephen, who didn’t ask any more questions or extend the conversation.

   Among all the orphans, Stephen was the one who intrigued him the most. Even after what he saw in the bathroom that day, Stephen never brought it up again, he didn’t explain what had happened, he just pretended it was nothing. And to tell the truth, Tim was afraid to even ask.

   Instead, they just walked back into the orphanage in silence, and the sound of the rain stopped as soon as Stephen closed the door.